Gold prices climbed on Thursday as the Middle East conflict kept investors worried, with safe-haven bullion standing firm despite a stronger US dollar and bonds yields.
Spot gold rose 0.4 percent to $1,986.79 per ounce. US gold futures edged up 0.1 percent to $1,997.10.
The dollar and benchmark US 10-year Treasury yields climbed after data indicated that new-home sales surged to a 19-month high in September, affirming market expectations of prolonged high rates heading into 2024.
Investors now await the US GDP numbers for the third quarter later in the day and the PCE price index on Friday ahead of the Federal Reserve’s rate decision next week.
“The Federal Reserve clearly sees higher interest rates as a route to reining in inflation,” said Nikos Kavalis, Managing Director at Metals Focus.
There’s nothing stopping them from one more hike as the US economy is pretty robust, Kavalis added.
Meanwhile, the European Central Bank is expected to keep interest rates unchanged at a record high on Thursday, snapping a 15-month streak of hikes.
On geopolitical front, Israel kept up its strikes on Hamas targets in Gaza as it prepared for a ground invasion, and world powers at the United Nations failed to secure plans to deliver critical humanitarian aid.